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Sharks and the Blues playoffs preview |
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There are a lot of questions that will be soon be answered about the San Jose Sharks when they face-off against the St. Louis Blues in the first round of the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs. Will they be a one series and out team, if they are does GM Wilson continue to tweak the Sharks or is a major overhaul in order.
Or is GM Wilson still around to make decisions and if he is let go does that mean that head Coach Todd McLellan goes as well. There is more riding on this series than meets the eye. The underlings are a plenty.
The series itself though is all we should focus on for the time being. The Sharks were dominated by the Blues this season and there is no other team in the league that could be a more difficult opponent for San Jose. So the first aspect that is different for the Sharks is that they are entering the post-season as underdogs for the first time in years. This could be a good thing for San Jose who has had the target on their backs the last few seasons as one of the favorites to represent the West in the Cup finals.
The break-down of these teams goes as follows:
Goaltending
The man between the pipes for the Sharks will be Antti Niemi and this is news to nobody. Niemi has improved his play of late and his focus has been much better and more consistent. He has been squaring to shooters and he has made clutch saves down the stretch that helped his team get into the playoffs.
The question mark for the Sharks starter is his rebound control. Niemi is stopping everything he should which is great for moral because the soft ones can really deflate a team, but the Sharks success will rely on how well Niemi controls the puck and how well his defense are able to clear loose pucks from in front of the net.
The back-up goalie Thomas Greiss has been great and seems to enjoy surprising the opposition with his athleticism. Greiss is a good go to guy if Niemi falters and his team mates rally around the German net minder as we saw in the last game of the regular season against the LA Kings. When Greiss entered the game his team was down 2-0 but they crawled their way back into the game and won it in overtime 3-2. Like last year the coaching staff should feel confident going to their second goalie.
The St. Louis Blues have the best one-two punch in between the pipes in the NHL. Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliott have been solid for the Blues all season long and when Halak gets the start in game one it will be while his teammate All-Star Brian Elliott watches from the pine.
Jaroslav Halak is no stranger to the playoffs as he took the Montreal Canadians on a Cinderella run to the Eastern Conference finals two years ago. He was a human high light reel every time he stepped on the ice. If Halak is able to find that form the Blues will not only breeze past San Jose, but will pose a great threat against the most potent of offenses.
If Halak isn’t up to the task Brian Elliott has a GAA of 1.56 and a save percentage of .940. Look for Halak to get the start with his experience compared to Elliott’s four games he started in the post-season when he was a part of the Ottawa Senators organization, which didn’t fare well.
Either way the Blues head Coach Ken Hitchcock must sleep well at night knowing his tandem of goaltenders is the envy of the league.
In this department the Blues hold a clear advantage over San Jose.
Defense
San Jose’s defensive core is a group, who like Antti Niemi improved down the stretch and takes a lot of pride in what they do. The top four players Dan Boyle, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Douglas Murray, and Brent Burns all have plenty of playoff experience with exception of Burns. They appear to be turning up the heat at the right time of year.
Dan Boyle has caught fire recently finding the back of the net and scoring important goals for the Sharks. He is and has been the leader back there for the Sharks and knows what it takes to succeed this time of year having won a Cup in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Marc-Eduoard Vlasic continues to play with Boyle and has had his best year as a NHL player. His stick is among the best and his relentless defense frustrates opponents to no end.
The Sharks are going to need Douglas Murray, Brent Burns, and Colin White (if he suits up) to be not only strong but nasty in front of their house. The Blues forwards are pesky and only see the puck when driving the net. This series may be won or lost depending on who controls the traffic and loose pucks in front of their own goal.
Not to be lost in the shuffle Justin Braun and Jason Demers will be relied upon for valuable minutes for the Sharks. Braun has improved so much this season and has jumped into the play more the last ten games than he did all year. His quick feet and acceleration allow him to recover from taking offensive chances.
St Louis’ blue line is fairly young aside from Barret Jackman but even he doesn’t have a lot of playoff experience. The go to guys offensively are Carlo Colaiacovo, Kevin Shattenkirk, and Alex Pietrangelo.
Pietrangelo has blossomed into an elite two way defenseman who finished third on his team in scoring with 51 points. These defenders aren’t household names but have gotten the job done for the Blues all year long. Kevin Shattenkirk was fourth on the team potting 43 points on the season. They make the power play for the Blues that much better and Colaiacovo’s offensive skill has never been questioned but his ability to stay healthy has. He is questionable for game one on Thursday.
The blue lines are fairly even but the edge has to go to San Jose in this case for the experience they can draw on, young blue liners often have a tough time matching the raised level of play in the post-season and this could play major factor in this series.
Forwards
The Sharks forwards are well known and some have had great years, even career when it comes to Joe Pavelski in the goals category with 31. Like the rest of the team the Sharks forwards picked up the pace down the stretch to ensure a playoff-birth. The depth players kicked in with some key goals at key times and most of the top six are playing at their best at the right time of year.
Joe Thornton has been a rock for the Sharks in March and early April which he hasn’t been famous for throughout his career. Joe has been the leader that they need him to be by scoring some key goals, setting up teammates, and even mixing things up by dropping the gloves. Joe Pavelski’s best scoring season came by playing the right wing with Jumbo and he has paid more attention to the defensive side of his game. This is Thornton’s time to shine and prove that he belongs in the conversations with the greats of the past twenty years. The time is now for Jumbo.
If Patrick Marleau can find his game and contribute on the scoreboard on the first line and Martin Havlat on the second line then the Sharks have a good shot at moving on.
The Blues are the epitome of consistency when it comes to their forward core. They are deep and filled with talent. When one line isn’t scoring the other picks up the slack. They have youth and experience with Jason Arnott and Jamie Langenbrunner both of whom have hoisted Lord Stanley’s Cup before.
The forward depth for the St. Louis Blues will most likely be the difference in this series if the Blues move on to the second round.
The top lines for the Sharks are skilled but so are the Blues and they can play a physical game with anybody. The third and fourth lines for St. Louis out match San Jose’s so this advantage goes to the Blues.
Intangibles
The most obvious intangible in this series is that the Blues dominated the Sharks this year winning all four meetings and they shut them out twice. The Sharks hardly got a sniff at the Blues net and their scoring chances were minimal.
Since that time when they last played the Blues have come back to earth and the Sharks have raised their game. The first game is going to be so important for San Jose and even more important will be how they perform in the first period of game one.
Going into this series the Sharks are going to have to be confident which won’t be easy against a team that took them to the cleaners this season so leadership and experience will have to be at the forefront. If the Sharks can hold their own against the young physical Blues in the opening twenty minutes it will do a world of good for their psyche and a win in game one will go a long way for the Sharks to win the series.
The other intangible falls into the favor of the Sharks and that is that most of their team has playoff experience which has come in the last few years. They have overcome and won some big games in the last two seasons by beating the Red Wings twice, the LA Kings including coming back from a four goal deficit. That experience should help San Jose with their confidence.
By no means is this a push over for the Blues regardless of the regular season stats. There is a reason that veterans with playoff experience are so desired at the trade deadline and the Sharks have plenty of it.
This series, like most others in this year’s playoffs should be a blast to watch presenting tough checking and entertaining hockey.
Keep your sticks on the ice,
Cam Gore
San Jose Sharks Blogger • 
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